Healthy eating on a budget?

[Bonnie]

I’m the one who needs to lose weight, and my husband can basically eat anything he wants and not gain a pound. I find that the most effective thing for me is purchasing “junk” that only he will want to eat, and that I won’t be tempted by.

My husband is the same, so I’ve bought him coconut macaroons as a treat. He’s since found out that he feels better without wheat or sugar, so he recently asked me not to buy them anymore. Quite a sacrifice on his part as he really likes them. He still gets a pastry or cookie once a week or so at our favorite coffee shop, but otherwise he pretty much sticks to my diet. Tho I do make rice for him - 1 box of on-sale rice-a-roni is cheap & can be added to 3 or 4 meals for him.

 

[Viki63]

Right now all we have is steel cut and that takes 25 minutes.

As others have noted, it’s really important to eat breakfast to start the day right. Otherwise his body will feel like he’s starving, and he’ll eat much more later on.

I heat a cup of water to boiling (3 minutes) in the microwave, and add one-third cup of steel cut oats, stir and put it in the refrigerator at night, In the morning it’s cooked, you just have to heat it, I add blueberries and walnuts/seeds, and eat with soy milk or plain yogurt.

Or you could boil several eggs on the weekends, and he could grab a couple in the morning, either to peel or if they’re hard to peel, you can cut them in half, scoop out the insides and heat . I like them with hot sauce but you could just have salt and pepper.

There’s no need for snacking if he’s eating plenty of vegetables and some protein at each meal.

.

 

[EasterJoy]

Lentils and beans taste a lot better cooked in animal-based stock. A small investment in soup bones pays off hugely with lentils and beans.

Umami doesn’t require meat. Miso, mushrooms, and tomatoes also lend that “meaty” taste.

I’ve found legumes are far less gas-producing if they aren’t served with simple carbohydrates. Having said that, I’m in favor of using fats and some sugar to “sell” vegetables." Don’t just serve them plain, but dress them up.

Also, switch from desserts to fruit and stick to using small amounts of sugar and refined carbohydrates in the preparation of other foods. For example: it is better to use a little flour and a little fat to “velvet” the meat for your stir fry than to eat a big heap of fried rice.

 

[ThePCWife]

Umami, if you just mean “MSG” used to be…derived from stock. Animal based stock. Meat can be used as flavoring and the soup bone or fish head is a perfectly healthy staple to stretch budgets and economize healthfully. I already suggested eggs because they’re dealing with budget constraints, and the nutrition of offal and scraps improves both the fullness and flavor factor of lentil and bean based dishes.

 

[WilliamE]

There is an Aldi nearby, but it’s a 28 minute walk, so we’ve been going to the grocery stores that are closer to us but not as cheap.

Have Hubby hike to Aldi. He’ll get cheaper food and some good exercise. Two birds…one stone.

 

[Nanni_amore]

Have Hubby hike to Aldi. He’ll get cheaper food and some good exercise. Two birds…one stone.

Will he be able to walk past all those fattening temptations and buy only healthy food?
I do!
Don’t you love how Aldi’s has all the chips snacks in the first shopping aisle?

 

[CatholicRaven]

Side note: You can make one big batch of steel-cut oats and just re-heat for a few days in a row to use it up so that you don’t have to cook it for 25 minutes every morning. Or you can use steel-cut oats to make an overnight oatmeal. There are several recipes online. I found a few that use a slow-cooker, too, and even a non-cooked version that I’m considering trying myself.

 

[oldgraymare2]

Will he be able to walk past all those fattening temptations and buy only healthy food?
I do!
Don’t you love how Aldi’s has all the chips snacks in the first shopping aisle?

Well, if you think about it Nanni, other stores do other things to tempt their customers, too.

Some have their tempting hot and cold deli sections right there, when you first come into the store, and then don’t forget that you have the impulse buys right there at the check-out line too, like the magazines and the candy bars and gum.

 

[Bonnie]

Don’t you love how Aldi’s has all the chips snacks in the first shopping aisle?

Our local grocery puts sale items where you can’t miss them - right in front of you as you walk in the door. When I got serious about low carb & knew I had to give up my favorite binge food - potato chips - guess what was on sale? I learned very quickly how to ignore it.

 

[AClaire11]

Have Hubby hike to Aldi. He’ll get cheaper food and some good exercise. Two birds…one stone.

Yeah, not happening. He’s going to be working 12 hours a day for the next year. I’m not going to make him spend over an hour schlepping groceries to save a few bucks.

I hate not being able to go to our old store. With the lack of generics, trying to eat more fresh fruit and veggies, and also having to pack lunches for him now, we’re spending over $100 a week on food.

 

[KnitNut]

Yeah, not happening. He’s going to be working 12 hours a day for the next year. I’m not going to make him spend over an hour schlepping groceries to save a few bucks.

I hate not being able to go to our old store. With the lack of generics, trying to eat more fresh fruit and veggies, and also having to pack lunches for him now, we’re spending over $100 a week on food.

How much is your budget with him not packing food? I know we spend so much more eating out or grabbing it on the fly than we do when we take time to pack ahead.

If he’s working 12hr days, I’d be proactive and pack a lunch case for him, including snacks. Since portion control is a part of weight loss, packing will allow him/you to control calories & nutrition much more closely. A thermos of soup/stew, a sandwich packed with veggies, lean meat, and a little cheese, a container of steamed veggies, a container of grapes (a reasonably sized container!), some whole grain crackers with hummus…lots of options.

We use these for packing lunches:
Bento Lunch Jar - the lunch jar has multiple compartments to hold dry food, wet food, etc.
Thermos with wide mouth, serving bowl and folding spoon included.
Portion Control Bento Boxes - dishwasher safe, microwaveable, and freezer safe so you can pack ahead as needed.

In my experience, if they have multiple little things to eat, they will be able to spread it out better. If I send a double helping of something, it’s gone in one go, so they’re “too full” after, and starving later. Being able to spread it out using the visual/physical cues of separate boxes/baggies has been much more effective. Also, the variety of foods seems to help with the mindset of dividing things up for snack, lunch, snack, dinner, etc.

A secret way to control cheese portions - use those shelf stable laughing cow wedges - melt one over veggies, or spread one on his sandwiches (or on a grilled cheese!)…and keep the rest hidden in the closet or something. I live with a cheese hound, so I feel your pain. I also buy chunks, not slices, and tell him exactly how much I need for the planned meals (and usually mark the package with divider marks), so he knows he can have some, but he doesn’t binge because he knows what the specific needs are for the other planned meals.

Cheap & healthy options - have you looked at any of the “one chicken, 5 meals” blog posts? Some great ideas. There’s a new cookbook out, “One to Five: One Shortcut Recipe Transformed into Five Easy Dishes.” They did great things with a pot roast, in the TV segment I saw about it. That would encourage some portion control, too, as a cheap pot roast can be spread out (as can a whole chicken, etc).

If he’s working 12 hour shifts, he will probably be tired enough that he’ll eat what you put out for him. Don’t give him reason to countersurf for snacks…keep a tray of fruit & veg cut up, or set out one of those bento boxes with fruit, nuts, cheese, and yogurt dip, for example. It takes more time and organization from you, but if weight loss is that important, the extra time you use can make a huge difference.

Also consider ways you can separate the carbs/sauces from the main food, if that might help. He can have the plain, steamed veg, and you could add sauce, melt a Laughing Cow wedge, etc, over your portion. If he’s actually happy with simple veg/meat, that will help him lose the weight…if you can find recipes that mix a sauce at the end, or don’t have starches mixed throughout (like rice stirred in), he can control the carbs to a much larger extent.

Good luck - it’s a big change, but definitely worth the improved health & well being!

 

[AClaire11]

How much is your budget with him not packing food? I know we spend so much more eating out or grabbing it on the fly than we do when we take time to pack ahead.

If he’s working 12hr days, I’d be proactive and pack a lunch case for him, including snacks. Since portion control is a part of weight loss, packing will allow him/you to control calories & nutrition much more closely. A thermos of soup/stew, a sandwich packed with veggies, lean meat, and a little cheese, a container of steamed veggies, a container of grapes (a reasonably sized container!), some whole grain crackers with hummus…lots of options.

We use these for packing lunches:
Bento Lunch Jar - the lunch jar has multiple compartments to hold dry food, wet food, etc.
Thermos with wide mouth, serving bowl and folding spoon included.
Portion Control Bento Boxes - dishwasher safe, microwaveable, and freezer safe so you can pack ahead as needed.

In my experience, if they have multiple little things to eat, they will be able to spread it out better. If I send a double helping of something, it’s gone in one go, so they’re “too full” after, and starving later. Being able to spread it out using the visual/physical cues of separate boxes/baggies has been much more effective. Also, the variety of foods seems to help with the mindset of dividing things up for snack, lunch, snack, dinner, etc.

A secret way to control cheese portions - use those shelf stable laughing cow wedges - melt one over veggies, or spread one on his sandwiches (or on a grilled cheese!)…and keep the rest hidden in the closet or something. I live with a cheese hound, so I feel your pain. I also buy chunks, not slices, and tell him exactly how much I need for the planned meals (and usually mark the package with divider marks), so he knows he can have some, but he doesn’t binge because he knows what the specific needs are for the other planned meals.

Cheap & healthy options - have you looked at any of the “one chicken, 5 meals” blog posts? Some great ideas. There’s a new cookbook out, “One to Five: One Shortcut Recipe Transformed into Five Easy Dishes.” They did great things with a pot roast, in the TV segment I saw about it. That would encourage some portion control, too, as a cheap pot roast can be spread out (as can a whole chicken, etc).

If he’s working 12 hour shifts, he will probably be tired enough that he’ll eat what you put out for him. Don’t give him reason to countersurf for snacks…keep a tray of fruit & veg cut up, or set out one of those bento boxes with fruit, nuts, cheese, and yogurt dip, for example. It takes more time and organization from you, but if weight loss is that important, the extra time you use can make a huge difference.

Also consider ways you can separate the carbs/sauces from the main food, if that might help. He can have the plain, steamed veg, and you could add sauce, melt a Laughing Cow wedge, etc, over your portion. If he’s actually happy with simple veg/meat, that will help him lose the weight…if you can find recipes that mix a sauce at the end, or don’t have starches mixed throughout (like rice stirred in), he can control the carbs to a much larger extent.

Good luck - it’s a big change, but definitely worth the improved health & well being!

It’s hard to keep track of what exactly counts as his lunch food, aside from the deli meat and cheese. I’ve been putting in peppers and cherry tomatoes, for example, but we both snack on those at home, too. And today his lunch was that and some leftover pasta with meat sauce. Honestly, now that I think about it, the main cost increase is probably that we don’t have generic brands available to us, plus we’re eating nicer food instead of having breakfast tacos twice a week. I did some looking and for a family of three in the DC area, our food spending isn’t actually that high. We’re just not being super frugal anymore.

Thank you for the suggestions, especially the bento boxes! We do have some containers with little separators, but I think they are too small for a 12 hour day.

 

[ahollars]

As someone who recently lost 40 pounds in 6 months, I can tell you what worked for me.

Poultry and fish are a must. Beef and pork are simply to high in the fat-to-protein ratio. I was no above snacking on sardines, especially on Fridays.

Learn to love dark vegetables. Spinach and broccoli work, especially when seasoned properly.

Corn is not a vegetable. (My wife disagrees, but oh well.)

If you can avoid it, do not get vegetables out of a can. The canning process removes much of the nutritional value. Get fresh or frozen.

Snack on nuts. Almonds are at the top for nutrition. Skip the sugar coating and you’ll come out ahead.

Salt, spices, and seasonings are calorie-neutral, or are so low that they are negligible. Unless he has a hard reason to watch his sodium intake, use the spice rack. Chicken and vegetables need not be plain to work.

Don’t believe the critics when it comes to diet drinks. Artificial sweeteners made my life so much easier. When you’re tracking your food intake, it’s nice to know that your drink will not set you backwards.

If you must fry food, then fry high and quick. Use plenty of oil to keep the temperature above 300 degrees. Too little oil leads to greasy food because there’s not enough heat to make steam in the food.

Butter is healthier than margarine. Not all oils are equal. Stay away from corn oil. Use olive oil when you can.

Add oatmeal to anything made with flour. Spin it in the food processor for oatmeal powder. Pancakes will be crunchy. Oatmeal lowers cholesterol and slows sugar absorption by the body.

Check out firm tofu. It will pick up the flavor of whatever you cook it in.

Use plain yogurt instead of sour cream when mixing.

Red wine is better than white wine, but for beer, light is better than dark or bold. Avoid hard liquors and distilled spirits. They are heavy on calories.

I could keep going, but you get the idea. I also found that cooking relaxes me, so I did most of my own preparation. Now, my wife lets me do almost all of the cooking. I went from a 39 inch waste down to 33 inches at the age of 35, and I didn’t exercise at all.

Healthy food can taste great and doesn’t have to be prepackaged. If I had to define the overriding factor, I would say that as long as your spice rack is fully stocked, everything else will follow. Have fun!